This invention relates to a preseamed sheet flooring product and method of constructing a preseamed sheet flooring product. The invention has particular application in the formation of sheet flooring products for spanning floor widths which are greater than the width of typical commercially-manufactured sheet flooring products. Flooring products made in accordance with the disclosure of this application can be used to cover floors which heretofore have been covered with resilient flooring products which, because they are narrower than the floor to be covered, are seamed in situ by installation technicians as the floor is being installed. Use of the term xe2x80x9cpreseamedxe2x80x9d in this application therefore refers to flooring products which are constructed of flooring products which may themselves be end products when seamed together during installation, but which have been seamed together during the manufacturing process, and thereafter shipped for later installation.
The novel features of the invention include processing techniques which permit efficient joining of the sheet products. The appearance and wear characteristics of the seam according to the invention render the seam sufficiently visually indistinct so as to be invisible except under careful scrutiny, and with the same wear characteristics as the flooring material itself.
The invention includes use of a class of adhesives which allows sections of flooring materials to be joined to form one or more free-floating sealed joints prior to the installation of the finished product. The flooring materials can comprise combinations of a wear layer, foam interlayer or core, a glass reinforced layer, and a nonfoamed or reinforced backing or a felt.
Normally, when a resilient sheet floor is installed in a room wider that the resilient flooring itself, the installer must create a joined seam as the floor is installed. The width of resilient flooring is limited by the size of machinery available for the manufacturing process. Such seams in a flooring structure can be undesirable due to many problems associated with installation and performance of the floor seam. These problems may include poor seaming techniques utilized by installers. These can cause the seams to pull apart or separate from the subfloor, and act as a trap for soil, food and beverage spills and the like. Separated seams also present an unattractive appearance.
Current commercially available seaming materials used by flooring installers include solvent-type welding systems, molten polymers or two-part urethane coatings which are used to seal the seam of the floor after it has been completely installed. Such seams are not sufficiently strong to withstand handling inherent in the manufacture, shipping and installation of the flooring product. In many instances the adhesives are not sufficiently strong to effectively bond all layers of a flooring structure.
For example, commercially available homogeneous sheet flooring materials are often seamed after installation by routing a groove along the seam line. A homogenous adhesive material similar in composition to the composition of the sheet flooring is heated in a tool and is then directed into the routed seam. This homogenous adhesive material is allowed to cool. The excess adhesive is then scived off in order to level the seam area with the remaining floor. This type of adhesive seam often disrupts the evenness and pattern consistency of the floor.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material having a predetermined width suitable for installation on a floor and providing the appearance and wear characteristics of a seamless floor.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material wherein the seaming adhesive has the wear characteristics of the sheet flooring material.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material wherein the seaming adhesive bonds aggressively to all layers of a multi-layer sheet flooring material.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material wherein the seam is sufficiently strong to withstand separation during subsequent manufacturing steps, shipment, storage and installation.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material which requires reduced installation labor.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material which avoids costs resulting from improper seaming during installation.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material wherein the seaming adhesive has the staining characteristics of the sheet flooring material.
It is another object of the invention to provide a preseamed sheet flooring material wherein two or more sheet products are joined by seams as an integral part of the manufacturing process to produce an end product which can be installed without an in situ seaming operation.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method of forming a preseamed sheet flooring material having a predetermined width suitable for installation on a floor and providing the appearance and wear characteristics of a seamless floor.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method of forming a preseamed sheet flooring material having a predetermined width suitable for installation on a floor wherein the seam fills with adhesive as a result of capillary flow during a pressure-applying step.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved in the preferred embodiments disclosed below by providing a preseamed sheet flooring product comprising first and second sheet products positioned closely adjacent each other edge-to-edge to form a seam therebetween. An adhesive is positioned above, below or in the seam. The adhesive has visual characteristics suitable for creating an indistinct appearance of the seam in the sheet flooring product and also having wear characteristics sufficiently similar to wear characteristics of the sheet flooring product to maintain the visually indistinct appearance of the adhesive on the surface of the seam as wear occurs to the end sheet flooring product.
According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, the first and second sheet products have a decorative surface including a pattern, wherein the first and second sheet products are positioned closely adjacent each other edge-to-edge to form a seam therebetween with the pattern on the first and second sheets in matching orientation with each other.
According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the edges of the first and second sheet products are shaped to define, when positioned closely adjacent each other, a predetermined void within the seam for retaining the adhesive therein.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the seam between the first and second sheet products is between 10 and 100 microns in width.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the sheet flooring product comprises wear layer, interlayer and backing layer.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the wear layer comprises PVC.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in tape form and forced into the seam by heat and pressure.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in powder form and forced into the seam by heat and pressure.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in scrim form and forced into the seam by heat and pressure.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in rope form and forced into the seam by heat and pressure.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in tape form and exposed to sufficient heat and pressure to initiate capillary flow of the adhesive into the seam.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in powder form and exposed to sufficient heat and pressure to initiate capillary flow of the adhesive into the seam.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in scrim form and exposed to sufficient heat and pressure to initiate capillary flow of the adhesive into the seam.
Preferably, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive applied to the seam in rope form and exposed to sufficient heat and pressure to initiate capillary flow of the adhesive into the seam.
An embodiment of the method of forming a preseamed sheet flooring material having a predetermined width suitable for installation on a floor and providing the appearance and wear characteristics of a seamless floor according to the invention comprises the steps of positioning first and second sheet products closely adjacent each other edge-to-edge to form a seam therebetween, applying an adhesive onto the seam, the adhesive having visual characteristics suitable for creating an indistinct appearance of the seam in the completed preseamed flooring material. Pressure is applied to the adhesive to force the adhesive into the seam. The adhesive is cured to thereby permanently bond the first and second sheet products together. The preseamed flooring product is placed into a compact configuration suitable for storage and shipment prior to installation on a floor.
According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, the first and second sheet products have a decorative surface including a pattern, and wherein the method includes the step of positioning the first and second sheet products closely adjacent each other edge-to-edge to form a seam therebetween with the pattern on the first and second sheets in matching orientation with each other.
According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the method includes the optional step of removing any adhesive remaining outside of the seam after curing.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the step of applying an adhesive to the seam comprises the step of applying a release paper, having an adhesive coated thereon, to the seam.
According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive comprises a hot melt adhesive, and the method includes the step of applying heat to the adhesive to melt the adhesive sufficiently to cause the adhesive to enter the seam.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the method includes the step of applying simultaneous heat and pressure to the adhesive.
According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive has wear characteristics sufficiently similar to wear characteristics of the sheet flooring material to maintain the visually indistinct appearance of the adhesive on the surface of the seam as wear occurs to the sheet flooring material.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the step of applying an adhesive onto the seam comprises the step of applying to at least one side of the seam a hot melt adhesive tape having sufficient width to bridge the seam and a predetermined adjacent strip of the first and second sheet products.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the method includes the step of applying a release paper to the hot melt adhesive tape.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the method includes the step of sandwiching the hot melt adhesive tape and seam between first and second release papers.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the method includes the step of shaping the edges of the first and second sheet products to define, when positioned closely adjacent each other, a predetermined void within the seam for retaining adhesive therein.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the step of applying an adhesive onto the seam comprises the step of applying first and second strips of hot melt adhesive material to respective front and back surfaces of the first and second sheet products in overlapping relation to the seam.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, the strips of hot melt adhesive material comprise a hot melt adhesive tape.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, the strips of hot melt adhesive material comprise a hot melt adhesive scrim.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, the adhesive comprises a rope of hot melt adhesive, and the step of applying the adhesive to the seam includes the step of placing the rope on top of the seam in position to be forced into the seam by pressure.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, the step of applying an adhesive onto the seam comprises the step of applying a hot melt adhesive powder into the seam.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the step of applying an adhesive comprises the step of applying a molten hot melt adhesive onto the seam, and further wherein the step of applying pressure to the adhesive to force the adhesive into the seam takes place while the adhesive is in its molten state.
Another method of forming a preseamed sheet flooring material having a predetermined greater width suitable for installation on a floor having a width greater than the width of either of the first or second sheets comprises the steps of positioning first and second sheet products closely adjacent each other edge-to-edge to form a seam therebetween and applying an adhesive onto the seam, the adhesive having visual characteristics suitable for creating an indistinct appearance of the seam in the completed end product sheet, and a viscosity sufficiently low to enable the adhesive to flow by capillary action into the seam. Pressure is applied to the adhesive sufficient to initiate capillary flow of the adhesive into the seam. The adhesive is cured to thereby permanently bond the first and second sheet products together.